Newcastle expect to appoint Unai Emery as boss before Saturday’s clash with Brighton, with the world’s richest football club paying £6m to buy out his Villarreal contract
- Newcastle have been looking for a manager since they sacked Steve Bruce
- Graeme Jones is currently the interim boss at Newcastle who sit 19th in the table
- The Magpies are now expected to announce the appointment of Unai Emery
- Their new Saudi-led regime hope to conclude a deal for Emery in next 48 hours
- They will pay Villarreal compensation worth £6m to bring him to St James’ Park
Newcastle United expect to have Unai Emery as their new manager before the weekend.
Sources have confirmed that Amanda Staveley and the club’s Saudi-led consortium hope to conclude a deal for the Villarreal boss in the next 48 hours.
The Magpies will have to pay the LaLiga club £6m in compensation to cancel his current contract and bring him over to St James’ Park.
Villarreal and former Arsenal boss Unai Emery is the leading contender for the Newcastle job
Amanda Staveley (right) and the club’s Saudi-led consortium hope to conclude a deal in the next 48 hours
Sportsmail reported last month that Emery was on the shortlist to replace Steve Bruce.
We understand talks accelerated over the weekend during a series of Zoom calls on Sunday.
And Staveley believes she has now got her man to lead the team out of the relegation zone.
Newcastle have endured a torrid start to the season taking just four points from their opening ten games and are yet to record a single victory.
The Magpies have been without a manager since Steve Bruce was sacked on October 20
There is a danger the club could be relegated, which would set them back following their Saudi-led takeover from Mike Ashley – which made them the richest football club in world football.
Newcastle have been without a manager since they sacked Steve Bruce on October 20 and have since been assessing a number of names for the role.
Graeme Jones, previously Bruce’s assistant head coach, was placed in interim charge, with the club drawing with Crystal Palace and losing to Chelsea under his stewardship.
Newcastle are languishing down in 19th after failing to win a game in their opening ten matches
Newcastle are prepared to equip their new manager with a huge war chest in the January transfer window but another 10 matches remain before they can seize the chance to spend.
Emery has enjoyed a successful stint at Villarreal, with his highlight seeing them win the first trophy in the club’s history by beating Manchester United on a penalty shootout in the Europa League final.
The LaLiga side have had a slower start to the new campaign and sit 13th after 11 games so far.
The 49-year-old has already held top-flight positions, including PSG and Arsenal, with his greatest success coming at Sevilla, where he won three Europa Leagues.
Emery’s spell at Arsenal did not go so well, as he was sacked after an 18-month stint at the Gunners following a poor start to the 2019-20 season.
Emery helped Villarreal win the Europa League after a tough spell previously at Arsenal